I found the Message Board.. this is my first entry. However I did participate in last evening's Chat and found it very interesting... even motivating. In fact I was elated to think about tackling a few stacks of stuff today... I have MANY nice sturdy paper bags with handles which I can label... I'll line them up on the floor in front of the sofa and do my sorting on the ottoman.

Unfortunately today I woke up with no motivation and no energy. I went to lunch with my partner JIM and now I must tidy up a little for the weekly cleaning girl... I am so lucky in that respect. But I'll tell her to ignore the den again... where the stacks of papers and books occupy the counter space and I cannot even open the doors behind which are shelves of more things to be organized. We moved here two years ago (when I stuffed the cabinets and closed the doors) and I have about two years' additional accumulation to pare down as well.

I will try to *attend* this Friday's chat at noon (also noon here in PHX) and I'll try to report some progress. Jim has cancelled his Gin Rummy game for tomorrow so that he can help me/encourage me/ do whatever he can.

Thanks for having this group and this board and the chat sessions. Eventually I will get moving. ann

Kara
here is a website where I have met many lovely people from all over the world.
UK, Australia, New Zealand, Ireland, Scotland, Spain, America, etc.

This site is for hoarders and messies only. Not for people without this issue.
So please only hoarders/messies use this link. :)

http://takeonestepatatime.proboards.com/

Ooooh :(
Bad idea for Diane
She needs to do this non shopping COLD TURKEY
Too tempting going to a shop without a specific list for only needed items. :)

Yesterday I was busier than usual, but I got in 30m of clutter sorting.

diane, I've heard it said that men will go shopping because they want to buy things, while women will buy things because they want to go shopping. It sounds like you fit the second stereotype -- you enjoy the shopping experience, but as a side effect, you end up buying things that you don't actually need. Maybe you can get the best of both worlds by taking someone else shopping -- ideally, someone who fits the first stereotype. That way, he's the one who pays the money and accumulates "stuff" (which in his case is presumably something he needs), but you still get the benefits of the shopping experience.

If you don't have a male (or stereotype-breaking female) friend to do that with, a second choice would be to go with a female (or stereotype-breaking male) friend who also enjoys shopping, but agree ahead of time that you are there for the shopping experience only and won't be buying anything.

Kara, a couple of websites for you. The first has a page of resources

helpforhoarders

and

hoardersuk

I just came into work a few minutes ago and showed my boss my new zombie slippers. That's right I said zombie slippers. I found them at "hot topics" and just had to buy them. :)

I also brought Matt and Cory into work with me today to show everyone how they react to my slippers. It's hilarious! They'll chase me around and bark like crazy when I have them on. Lol. :)

I've got some brain fog this morning, so I won't even attempt to address each of you individually. Just know that each of your posts is important to me and I look forward to coming to the boards here so much.

There are things that need doing but today I am feeling resistant to anything at all, other than feeding the cats. I hope if a few hours I can muster up and do something, anything.

Yesterday I did pay some bills, break down more (of the seemingly endless supply of) cardboard boxes for recycling. I cleaned the glass on half of my cabinet display chest and some of the wood. I cleaned up my acid bottle (one of those large green bottles you may sometimes see somewhere) which I brought back from overseas long ago. I wrote down the phone numbers of a doctor and a handyman but have yet to call them. I rounded up all the garbage but only half made it to the outside bin. I vacuumed part of hte living room. Slogging.

Another chat date. I will try to be there. :D

Friday, May 31, at noon Pacific Time, 3pm Eastern Time, 8pm British Time. Everybody's welcome to attend.

Today I must get out and water my trees & bushes & flowers.
Then I will take a nap. :)
Feeling much better but still tired & don't want to push it. :D

Keep up all the FANTASTIC progress you all have been making! :D

Good morning! :D

Roxie Way To Go! on sweeping & sorting out things to their proper places. :)

Anne Great job on that stove top!
Hope you had fun on your reward cookout. :D

HI Billie :D
YEA! for all you gathered for the donation! WTG! :D

Dianne so proud of you taking care of that billing problem right away! :D
Happy you signed up for the hospital classes. (((hugs)))

Karl good idea but maybe the anvil should drop on him ;) jk
Keep up the great work! Soon you will begin to see great progress. :)

Hi Kara :D
Welcome! looking forward to getting to know you :)

Diane as always you simply amaze me! :D

to clarify meant to say, first step was to STOP shopping, not to start, lol

good morning all,, Thank you Anne for the kind words. Yes, I did alot, but as you know, looking at what is left, makes me have faulty thinking. Today I will do dishes, work on dining room table, sorting stuff by categories. clean off computer table. Already paid bills on that table. Have things to file, such as outings I plan to take this summer in RV. I am in such a hurry because my reward is to go on trips to lakes this summer. Oh, I also need to clean part of steps outside, I tripped on tarp yesterday, Tillie was right, safety hazards need to be done first.
Welcome Kara, hope this site helps you as it does for the rest of us.
For me, I shopped to deal with the anxiety of failures in my life and anxiety of growing hoard. First step for me was to shopping, which I have stopped for 2 months. I was addicted to shopping almost daily. Kept piling more stuff on piles, broke toe a few times on my "valuables". I was having difficulty getting going this morning, then read the kind words from Anne, and now ready to tackle the day.

Another chat! (experimental)

It turns out that Kara is in the UK, so it's hard for her to make it to the two scheduled chat sessions. Some of us have agreed to try meeting this Friday, May 31, at noon Pacific Time, 3pm Eastern Time, 8pm British Time. Everybody's welcome to attend. I'll try to be there.

WoW, Diane -- I just read your post & thought -- what she says is a day she "took it easy" sounds like a "triathalon" of achievement to me!!!
Keep up the good work, & try not to be too harsh on yourself ;)

Great reading all that you have written on here since I last signed on, busy board. I did dishes, cleaned kitchen floor, threw away expired food, threw more stuff away and more give away stuff. Worked in dining room and rearranged some stuff and realized some stuff really was tacky, looks much better now. Tomorrow will tackle the table. Then I got side tracked in garage, trying to find one thing and messed around with other stuff. Realized some cabinets out there are empty, have to clean out before put stuff in. Stuff is piled high in garage, peeked around to see what "valuables" are out there, was able to throw alot of books away that were dirty and curled pages, and some craft stuff. Several cassette albums of motivational speakers are now in garbage. So much more to do. I took it easy today, then felt like I didn't get enough done. Now telling myself, you made progress, even small progress is progress, way better than shopping for my sanity.
Billie, I am enjoying your journey, liked that you said it was easier when things were sorted. I find that having things all over the place makes it really hard to make decisions, good they boxed it by category. I am going to try that, just too hard to decide when I look at the table full of stuff. Great you are posting

Hi all. I'm new here.

Cory, if we don't meet her tonight, see if you can find out what time of day is convenient for her, and translate that to PDT -- I keep such oddball hours that there's a decent chance that I could chat with her some time during the week.

Just checked the online group & they are there :D

From what I have heard in last Sunday chat
several people have said that they will be on chat tonight. :)

Will anyone be on the support group tonight? I have someone from another country that really wants to talk. Hoping if she can stay awake, some people will be there. Hope you all had a great holiday!

Yes, I did get the third session in. My original plan was to do that before showering, and consider a 4th session after, in keeping with the "alternate tasks" idea. But it was already way late, and I didn't want to do both, so I opted to shower/shampoo first, which would allow my hair to dry while I did some sorting.

billie, I've noticed that when I post a message here, it doesn't show up immediately. If you count to ten and then refresh the page, I bet you'll see it.

Tillie, this isn't a serious suggestion, but I had a mental image of hooking up a Rube Goldberg contraption that would drop a weight onto the kitten if your hoarder doesn't get a task completed.

I guess I'll see some of you at the chat session tonight.

This is my first time posting on here...
Well Team....I did it!...I got boxes filled with 68 books!...out on the porch ready for donation pick up today! YaY! And a box of cat toys that my cat, Velvet does not play with. Oh yeah got almost all the dishes done.
You have been an inspiration to me diane. I know how difficult it is for us to deal with our over abundance of "stuff" and to get things cleaned up. On our last Sunday night group..you really got to me. I have seen all the great progress that you have made through the weeks. Then I said to self....self, if diane can do it... you have got to do it and ..self..you can do it. Thank you for being you diane :)
And Tillie, thank you for the reminder of alternating between my "need to's" and my "want to's" :)
And Karl...your striving along to " gitter done" :)
I am realizing what a great team all of us in this group are and how much we need each other.

Thanks to all....

This is my first time posting on here...
Well Team....I did it!...I got boxes filled with 68 books!...out on the porch ready for donation pick up today! YaY! And a box of cat toys that my cat, Velvet does not play with. Oh yeah got almost all the dishes done.
You have been an inspiration to me diane. I know how difficult it is for us to deal with our over abundance of "stuff" and to get things cleaned up. On our last Sunday night group..you really got to me. I have seen all the great progress that you have made through the weeks. Then I said to self....self, if diane can do it... you have got to do it and ..self..you can do it. Thank you for being you diane :)
And Tillie, thank you for the reminder of alternating between my "need to's" and my "want to's" :)
And Karl...your striving along to " gitter done" :)
I am realizing what a great team all of us in this group are and how much we need each other.

Thanks to all....

Roxie -- Thanks for your reply ;) Sounds like your home is in good shape & you are keeping it that way :D ...Are you in "maintenance" phase?
If so, would you help me by sharing what you found most helpful?

Billie-- Your test post worked...
How's the donation thing going/gone today?

Ok- Time for me to "conquer" my 15min in Kitchen!

This is a test. I have been trying to post but it wouldn't go through....so just trying this

This is a test. I have been trying to post but it wouldn't go through....so just trying this

Hi Everybody -- It is super exciting to see how everyone is working so hard & achieving goals!!!

Billie -- Wanted to check in -- How did the donation pick-up go today(Tues)?

Tillie -- Soooo glad you are taking good care of yourself (& then you can heal that much sooner :) Also good to hear that your partner is allowing you the rest you so dearly need right now! Rest is the Best!!! :)
I had a kidney infection a number of years ago, but I still remember how painful it was & how much it zapped my energy.
Hope the shower/shampoo comes through today :)

Dianne -- Sounds like you are doing good work! It's funny you mentioned the thing about repair folks coming to our space. Today, I had the man come who annual checks the roof & twice a year cleans the gutters. I realized a few things... #1. My anxiety level is different depending upon if it's a returning vs. one time visit repair-person.
#2. Today, I realized I do have choices -- which helped me feel more "in control."
2a.The man had a leaf blower & I don't have an outdoor outlet so I just took a deep breath & hauled up the garage door right in front of him. It actually felt kind of liberating! There before us stood the chaotic garage contents(which contains 1/2 my mess & 1/2 my father's hoard). I was surprised to find I only felt a moment of discomfort.
2b. However, the outlet is inside in the basement of the house. There's a door connecting the garage to the basement -- which also shares 1/2 my mess (within labeled rubbermaid tubs) & 1/2 my father's (scattered piles & objects) -- I decided to ask the roof man to hand me his power cord & plug it in myself.
That helped me feel more "in control" of how much I "exposed" of my struggle to someone else in one shot.

Gosh, this is getting really long-- Sorry! -- Let me (try) to wrap up quickly!

Diane-- Great to hear you are actively maintaining your cleared & now clean Spaces -- It sounds LOVELY :)

As does JANICE's Space! I love the idea of the iris "memorial/celebration" garden outside your KraftyKorner. I hope to do something similar once I get the inside of my home under control.

Karl -- So So Psyched to hear you got in AT LEAST another 30 minutes Done Monday!!!
(Did you manage to fit in the 3rd 15 min session after your last post?) Also, glad to hear you're rewarding yourself for your accomplishments!!!

I find that the rewards keep me focused on task & motivated to finish :)

...which leads me to ME...
Yesterday(Mon), I cleaned my grimy stovetop -- YaaaaY! It actually took me 35 minutes (vs. 15), but I had set my rewards as 1st quickly dropping by for neighborhood sooreie(sp?) & then a friend's cookout -- so I wasn't going to stop before I completed my goal!!! --The 1 instance my "stubbornness" proves advantageous;)

Today's Goal: 15min clearing Kitchen Counter

I'm so happy to read everyone's posts.

Janice, welcome and I'll be glad to keep reading of your progress.

Karl, the 15 minute intervals seems to be working for you. That is great! Let us know how it goes with your "cleaning party" coming up. Reward them with pizza or something?

Anne, perhaps adding the W would be a good idea. If I ran into another Roxie I'd add an initial, too.

Dianne, perhaps you would at this point in time be most comfortable with getting a handyman who can start working outdoors? I'm looking out my window at a jungle of a side yard and I think I'll start there. I have a huge list of projects but first have to pay off some things and accumulate more money. I'm living on disability.

Just FYI, my son (only child) married his sweetheart while both were in the Army. They got married on base in desert camo, then "honeymooned" on deployment in Baghdad. Thanks be they are home safe, and she's now out of the Army. He's career at this point and doing well.

Yesterday I swept most of the kitchen floor and around my computer desk. I rounded up and took out garbage bags from around the house. I unloaded the sink and dishwasher and put some more things in their "proper" places (so unlike me). I transferred things from my disgusting, poor old purse to a new-to-me one I got to replace it. I meanwhile cleared out the accumulated "stuff" from the purse and transferred all the loose change to one of my two loose change jars. They add up after awhile.

I have large bags of cat food on my kitchen floor, which is fine, but the cats go "shopping" in individual bags sometimes. It's funny but also messy. I have the more expensive stuff for my indoor cats and less expensive for the feral cat colony I have. Sometimes my personal cats seem to want "junk food." :D

WOW!
Such positive posts from Ya'll :D
Everybody has made some GREAT progress!
Reading here has really lifted my spirits. :D

I am still bedridden.
Yesterday he finally "got it" that I have been ill.
Took responsibility for his kitten all day and left me to sleep undisturbed.

My plan for today is to try to get up enough energy to shower & shampoo.
That always makes me feel more positive. :D

Keep up all the great work you all have been doing, cleaning, decluttering and self exploration.

(((hugs)))

Today's picnic was awesome, despite the threat of rain; I got in an hour of bicycling exercise to get there and another hour getting back, played croquet, and managed to avoid overeating despite the abundance of food. Perhaps the day was even a net weight loss, which would be unusual for a pot luck event.

When I got home, I immediately dished up a helping of ice cream -- and then set a 15m timer to do some cleaning/sorting while it softened. After that "reward", I dealt with the day's email. (It really seems to help when I alternate between cleanup tasks and other tasks.) Then a second 15-minute session, followed by some more internet activity, and composing what turned out to be a difficult message to a mailing list I'm on, asking for friends to come over and help next weekend. Now I'm going to take a shower, then do a third 15-minute session before going to bed.

Yes, this is a great community. Good you got some rest.
I had a good day, much more relaxed than past week. I cleaned the kitchen, did dishes, then was motivated to finally make soup with surviving vegetables, black eyed peas, and all kids of other things, took a long time to make but will last for days and it is so delicious. I havent been eating well, so was great to make something that tastes wonderful and is good for me. I did lots of odds and ends, did some paperwork that is due this week, didn't go anywhere as usual, just enjoyed the rain and clouds, which motivated me to work inside.

So wonderful to read all the posts here! :D

Today turned out to be windy, cloudy with a good chance for rain.
Made him take care of the kitten so that I could get the rest/sleep I need.
And I really needed it. :D

Thank you all for posting. What a lovely little community we have here. :)

Karl -- AWESOME!!!!
I was looking for your post today & got so excited when I saw it & read about your PROGRESS :) 30 minutes is great! (Better than the day before, right?)

Roxie -- Loved reading about all the things you accomplished today :) You did ALOT -- Definitely Rockin' the Progress!!!

I am in my kitchen today too. My goal is scrubbing clean my grimy stovetop -- I'm doing it right after this post & will update you all later.

Dianne -- I can really relate to what you posted today... I, also, isolate when my thought patterns bring me down into a dark place; when I get overwhelmed by anxiety & the onslaught of "Past Mistakes"[my interpretation] that often surface --flooding me with unpleasant memories & emotions-- when I start going through older piles.

I say this because I want you to know (or remind you;) that you are not alone. And, you are wonderful just for being you -- honestly :) Your post today alone is evidence that you are working on things & moving forward.

Please be gentle on yourself and know that we are all here rootin' for ya!

Also, I just realized there's an AnneL, & maybe another Ann or Anne -- all here before I came along a couple of weeks ago...

Should I add an initial to the end of my name, ie: "AnneW"-?- so as not to confuse folks?

MayMay, what's with the fire truck? LOL

Diane, you are inspirational.

Karl, keep on!

Yesterday I ran the dishwasher, broke down more cardboard boxes to recycle, hand did a sink of other dishes, put away the cat food into the cabinets (new concept for me), wiped down the countertops. Not much but it is forward motion.

I was thinking of mowing the lawn when out of nowhere a storm started. Hmmm

I did one 15-minute session before dinner, and another after; I was hoping to get a third in, but that didn't work out this time. Let's see what I can get done Monday evening after I'm back from the picnic event.

Thanks for all the kind posts about what I got done this week. Today I only did a few things, tired after all the hours working this week. I did 3 loads of laundry, most is put away. I hung up clothes line over deck, it had fallen down months ago. was able to hang out blankets after a quick spin in dryer after wash. Changed everything on daybed. Took time to think of things I am grateful for. Joined in group tonight, was helpful. Tomorrow I plan to tidy up living room and kitchen and work on dining room, supposed to rain, so hopefully will be a good day to work inside, again. Thank goodness for bad weather for indoor cleaning. First nice day, I will be out in yard doing fun stuff, I have missed it with all that I have been doing. This week I am going to strive for a little more fun.

YEA Karl!!!
Thank you for posting! :D
We are all looking forward to your next posts! :D
You CAN do this! :D

Not much progress here lately. Let's change that.

I'm currently in the Sunday chat support, and when it's over and I've eaten dinner, I'll make a point of setting that 15-minute timer for cleanup work, multiple times. (A single 15-minute session per day just isn't going to cut it, especially if I keep missing days when I'm too busy.)

Expect my next post here to report on my success.

OMG!!!!! THIS IS SO CRAZY!!!!! :D

Right now I'm in a FIRE TRUCK with a bunch of firefighters on my way to see what my new clean bedroom and closet looks like. :D

Thanks Dianne and Roxie. :)

Yes Roxie, Cory and Matt are my 2 dogs. They are named after Cory Chalmers and Matt Paxton. :)

Welcome back, MayMay! When you mentioned Cory and Matt, I about flipped... now I realize they must be your pets, not the Cory and Matt we all know about. hehehe

Diane, I am beyond impressed with what you are able to do. Your ingenuity and tenaciousness are wonderful to see.

Dianne, I've missed you. Are you okay? Good to have you back.

Everyone else, good to see you, too.

If anyone hears from KindredSpirit, please ask her to post so I can stop being concerned.

I ran a number of errands yesterday, including dropping donations off at the cat rescue thrift store, visiting the cat rescue, the library, picked up speakers for my computer, cat supplies, and replacement cookie sheets and cooling racks. I still can't figure out where to plug the speakers into the danged computer. So frustrating to lose my mind. :D

I'm having a lot of trouble with lifting weights like boxes of cat litter. I'd like them under ten pounds, but only found one brand that lightweight. I'll have to cruise the internet to see what I can find. This is aggravating because in my 40s I was weightlifting, running, bicycling and doing aerobics. Now I can hardly walk half a block. grr

YAY! I'm finally back from Hawaii and away from my mom's crazy side of the family! :)

Right now it is 1:30am where I live; and I just got back from Hawaii. :)

I am so glad to be back!!!!! :)

When I arrived at my boyfriend's house, to pick up Matt and Cory, I literally jumped on my boyfriend when I first saw him; and then when Matt and Cory saw me, they immediately started jumping all over me. Lol. :)

I missed all of them so much while I was gone.

I'm so EXCITED for tomorrow night!!!!! :)

Because tomorrow night I will finally get to see what my new bedroom looks like. :)